Can you experienced ladies help with the lunch meat thing?

NicoleSB80 · August 2012

I like my sandwiches and alot of days I'll make a salad and toss some of the deli chunks on top for protien. I read deli meat it a no-no unless heated. Can I heat it, let it cool and then it eat or do I need to eat it while still hot? Any other tips would be great aside from me having to cook my own chicken breasts.

cvl105 · August 2012

Hm...I think if you heat it up and let it cool it will be fine. I'll let others chime in too. Lunch meat is what I missed most during pregnancy last time. I cheated and had an italian sub once....not heated. I'm a rebel! Stick out tongue

JSS1002 · August 2012

I specifically asked my doctor about lunch meat - she said it is better to buy a whole turkey breast or whatever and roast / slice it yourself, but if you buy it pre-sliced from the deli or whatever, nuke it for a minute, then stick it back in the fridge immediately and it should be fine.

Trish&Pete07 · August 2012

With my first daughter there was a listeria (I think that's what it's called and how it is spelled) scare at a major lunch meat processing plant so I did not eat lunch meat then, but with my second one I ate it all the time. I actually worked part time at a sub place for some extra $$$. As long as the meat is handled well it's fine. I ate it hot, cold didn't matter.

MCADDmama · August 2012

I ate lunch meat a few times, whenever I was craving a turkey sandwich. Heating the lunchmeat made me sick, so I just ate it right out of the fridge.

smb722 · August 2012

You can heat it and let it cool. Some women do actually eat deli meat while pregnant. I think the risk for listeria is actually pretty low but I guess it's better to be safe than sorry.

I don't know if you have a trader joe's near you, but they pre-package real turkey breast sliced for sandwiches. It's not the processed deli turkey but it's a great substitute. I used this on sandwiches the entire time I was pregnant with DS.

NicoleSB80 · August 2012

We don't have trader joes (I love that place!) I want to make a trip to our nearest whole foods this weekend if we can to upgrade some of my current snacks...maybe they will have something similar.

Ciconrad · August 2012

I've eaten it in moderation with all my pregnancies. There's a relatively low risk of listeria. If you want to eliminate absolutely any risk than avoid it altogether or heat it first, but for me the small risk just didn't bother me. And heating it was nasty, IMO. Just also make sure if you are buying it at the grocery store, to eat it within a few days. Deli meat doesn't have a long shelf life.

ChicagoBroad26 · August 2012

NicoleSB80:
We don't have trader joes (I love that place!) I want to make a trip to our nearest whole foods this weekend if we can to upgrade some of my current snacks...maybe they will have something similar.

Since you said you didn't want to cook your own chicken breasts, Whole Foods has great pre-cooked chicken breasts at their prepared food counter. I buy those in bulk.

NicoleSB80 · August 2012

ChicagoBroad26:
NicoleSB80:

We don't have trader joes (I love that place!) I want to make a trip to our nearest whole foods this weekend if we can to upgrade some of my current snacks...maybe they will have something similar.

Since you said you didn't want to cook your own chicken breasts, Whole Foods has great pre-cooked chicken breasts at their prepared food counter. I buy those in bulk.

Thanks! I'm a big cooker/baker but we eat alot of vegetarian for dinners so I bake tofu/beans/etc. I can't stand touching raw chicken anymore. Though I might be able to handle a whole chicken thrown in a crockpot....or maybe even breast for that matter. I just don't want to have to hold them/cut them/etc. :gagging:

FamilyofFive2013 · August 2012

Ciconrad:
I've eaten it in moderation with all my pregnancies. There's a relatively low risk of listeria. If you want to eliminate absolutely any risk than avoid it altogether or heat it first, but for me the small risk just didn't bother me. And heating it was nasty, IMO. Just also make sure if you are buying it at the grocery store, to eat it within a few days. Deli meat doesn't have a long shelf life.

+1. Unfortunately my most prevalent pregnancy craving seems to be a nice thick turkey sandwich.

Dman85 · August 2012

I ate it my last pregnancy. Not everyday, but if I wanted a Subway I got it! My son was perfectly healthy. When the risk is so low it didn't really bother me. If they have a certain # of it they (public health) have to let you be aware of it.

kelsea1031 · August 2012

SpringPeeper:
heating it and letting it cool is fine. I didn't eat much with my last pregnancy, and when I did, I just got it toasted at subway. This time, I'll probably eat more since I'm running out of lunch options.
FWIW, lunch meat is not on the "don't eat" list from my doctor.

This. My doctor told me to use common sense. Make sure you get your lunch meat from a reputable source and take proper food handling precautions (EX: don't leave it out on the counter for several hours and then eat it). And as with just about every single thing, moderation is key.

kammmmay · August 2012

Trish&Pete07:
With my first daughter there was a listeria (I think that's what it's called and how it is spelled) scare at a major lunch meat processing plant so I did not eat lunch meat then, but with my second one I ate it all the time. I actually worked part time at a sub place for some extra $$$. As long as the meat is handled well it's fine. I ate it hot, cold didn't matter.

I agree. As long as it is handled well, you should be ok. My doctor told me not to be too worried. I still heated it up most of the time, but wasn't too worried if I wasn't able to.

megilb · August 2012

i ate it all the time with my first pregnancy

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